Recovery efforts from the worst U.S. air disaster in more than two decades yielded both black boxes -- the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder — from the American Airlines jetliner involved in Wednesday's midair collision with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter.
Less than 24 hours after the tragic crash killed all 67 people on both aircraft near the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation removed the black boxes from the wreckage of American Airlines flight 5342.
"The recorders are at the NTSB labs for evaluation," the agency said in a statement to AFP.
Divers pulled the black boxes from the Potomac River, where recovery efforts also included at least 40 bodies. The recorders are expected to give investigators their best clues in determining the factors that led to the collision that left no survivors but left lots of questions.
"It should not have happened," new National Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said at a White House press conference that saw wide speculation about the cause. "When Americans take off in airplanes, they should expect to land at their destination – that didn't happen yesterday."
The black boxes should help NTSB investigators piece together the data and communications between the aircraft and air traffic controllers.
President Donald Trump made wild claims blaming the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies, while also seeming to blame the helicopter for initiating the collision.
A bombshell Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) report revealed that the control tower where pilots were receiving instructions from was understaffed before the crash. Typically, two controllers are supposed to be informing airplanes landing at and leaving from the Ronald Reagan International Airport and directing helicopters flying in the area.
The NTSB will continue to lead recovery efforts on Friday, including the removal of bodies and both aircraft.
Originally published on IBTimes
